NCAA

Georgia may have taken it personally when the Bulldogs were third in the initial College Football Playoff rankings.

The No. 3 Bulldogs coasted past top-ranked Tennessee 27-13 on Saturday at home in Sanford Stadium, and the final score doesn't do justice to the gulf between the teams. It was a comprehensive victory and a result that looked secure after the first quarter.

A 13-yard Stetson Bennett touchdown run and a 37-yard TD pass to Ladd McConkey put the reigning national champions up 14-3 with 3:32 left in the opening frame. They didn't look back from there.

Whereas Tennessee's Hendon Hooker looked like the Heisman Trophy favorite entering the game, Bennett was the quarterback who took center stage. He finished 17-of-25 for 257 yards and two touchdowns.

The Georgia defense also suffocated a Tennessee offense that was leading FBS in yards (553.0) and points (49.4) per game. The Vols had 289 total yards and turned the ball over twice.

Georgia opened the season with an emphatic 49-3 hammering of Oregon but hadn't added another signature win since then. Close victories over Kent State and Missouri led people to wonder whether Kirby Smart's squad was far more vulnerable compared to last year.

Instead, the Bulldogs might still be the best team in college football.

Georgia closes with Mississippi State, Kentucky and Georgia Tech, and it basically has two paths to the CFP semifinals. An unbeaten regular season will put the Bulldogs in regardless of what happens in the SEC title game, while winning the conference championship would more than make up for one loss between now and then.

The Peach Bowl and Fiesta Bowl are slated to be the two semifinals this season. It's safe to say Georgia fans should start making travel plans for Atlanta or Glendale, Arizona, if they haven't already.

Missouri has agreed to a two-year extension with football coach Eli Drinkwitz, per Dave Matter of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

The deal keeps the coach under contract through 2027.

Drinkwitz is in his third season with the Tigers, leading the team to a 4-4 record so far in 2022. They are coming off their biggest win of the season, a 23-10 road victory over South Carolina.

University of Missouri President Mun Choi praised the program's direction in a statement:

"Coach Drinkwitz and his staff have created great momentum in our football program. You can feel the excitement and you see it in the fans as they have turned out in great numbers at Faurot Field. Coach Drinkwitz's program is a key part of the results-driven, championship culture that AD Reed-Francois is building to help support our student-athletes. Like so many of our fans, I am excited to see what the future holds for Mizzou Football."

Missouri went 5-5 in Drinkwitz's first year with the team before going 6-7 last year, including an appearance in the Armed Forces Bowl.

This year's squad has also struggled to get above .500, although it's shown impressive resilience with one-possession losses to Auburn, Georgia and Florida in consecutive weeks before earning back-to-back wins.

Missouri had a 10-point lead over No. 1 Georgia in the fourth quarter before eventually losing 26-22.

A difficult schedule remains, starting with Saturday's game against Kentucky, but Drinkwitz has shown he can keep his team competitive in the always-tough SEC. He will try to build on that momentum to turn the Tigers into a legitimate contender over the next few seasons.

Vanderbilt defensive backs coach Dan Jackson posted an apology Friday night, saying he showed "poor judgment" with a Facebook post discussing Kanye West's antisemitic remarks.

Aria Gerson of The Tennessean reported Jackson's post wasn't publicly viewable, but it was sent anonymously to the Stop Antisemitism organization:

West, now known as Ye, was suspended from Instagram after posting antisemitic content. His Twitter account was also temporarily restricted shortly after West tweeted he was going to go "death con 3 on JEWISH PEOPLE."

Vanderbilt athletic director Candice Storey Lee and head football coach Clark Lea released a joint statement.

"We are aware of concerns raised today relating to a social media post by a member of our staff. Although we have been assured these comments were not directed at any specific group, we are deeply disappointed by this situation and are handling it internally," the statement read.

"The university and its athletics program are committed to creating and fostering a welcoming environment for all where differences are respected and all members of our community feel equal, valued and included. Please know that we reject antisemitism and discrimination in all its forms."

Antisemitism has been on the rise of late in the United States. The Anti-Defamation League found reports of antisemitism rose 34 percent between 2020 and 2021 to the highest number since the organization began tracking the information in 1979.

Jackson was hired by Vanderbilt ahead of the 2022 season.

He previously spent time as an assistant at Northern Illinois and South Dakota State, his alma mater where he also played linebacker from 2003 to 2005.

His coaching career started at Burke High School in his hometown of Omaha, Nebraska.

Vanderbilt won three of its first four games to open the campaign, but it's currently on a four-game losing streak that dropped its record to 3-5.

The Commodores are set to face South Carolina on Saturday night.

Will Levis' struggles in big games have apparently not turned off NFL front offices.

ESPN's Todd McShay reported the Kentucky quarterback has drawn comparisons to Josh Allen and Carson Wentz from NFL general managers, and he's still expected to be a high first-round pick.

Levis has a bevy of raw physical talent at 6'3" and 232 pounds, but his senior season at Kentucky has been anything but spectacular. He's thrown for 1,733 yards and 13 touchdowns against eight interceptions while struggling mightily in games against elite opponents.

In Levis' four games this season against ranked opponents, he has more interceptions (five) than touchdowns (four). He's coming off a dreadful three-pick performance in last Saturday's 44-6 loss to Tennessee—an outing some thought would send him plummeting down draft boards.

That does not appear to be the case for now. It seems front offices remain enamored with his physical gifts and are willing to chalk up most of his struggles to playing an SEC-level schedule with middling Kentucky talent.

Allen (Wyoming) and Wentz (North Dakota State) both played next to non-elite talent at the college level before being high first-round draft picks. The gamble with Allen paid off for the Buffalo Bills, though it took years of patience as he struggled to acclimate to NFL game speed. Meanwhile, Wentz is playing for his third NFL team in as many seasons and seems unlikely to land a chance at a starting job with a fourth.

There is likely a team that will be willing to roll the dice on Levis' talent. It's just hard to find evidence of impending success from his tenures at Kentucky or Penn State, where he lost the starting job to Sean Clifford.

Jackson State head football coach Deion Sanders denied speculation Thursday that he is taking a flight to Atlanta to discuss the head coaching vacancy at Auburn.

Sanders responded Thursday to a tweet that said he was flying to Atlanta, calling it a "lie":

The writer of the tweet had previously acknowledged that what he tweeted wasn't true:

Sanders, a Pro Football and College Football Hall of Fame cornerback, has enjoyed great success in three seasons as the head coach at Jackson State, including an 8-0 record this season. That has sparked talk that he could be a target for Auburn following the firing of Bryan Harsin on Monday.

After leading Jackson State to an 11-2 record last season and guiding them to a sizzling record in 2022, Sanders has fielded many questions about making the leap to Auburn or another team in a Power Five conference.

He said on ESPN's College GameDay last weekend that he would entertain offers (h/t Mark Heim of AL.com).

Sanders expressed thankfulness this week for being on the Power Five radar as a coach at a historically Black college or university (HBCU) but said nothing to suggest he is thinking of leaving his current situation:

"That's a blessing — that's truly a blessing. Sorry to interrupt, but I've got to get these points out. I don't think too many African-American coaches from the HBCU has ever been attached to anything concerning the Power Five, so that's truly a blessing.

"We love to do things that hadn't been done around here in Jackson State, and this is another prevalent thing that hadn't been done that we're doing."

Before Sanders' arrival at JSU, the Tigers had finished .500 or worse in six consecutive seasons, but he has already ensured a third straight winning season under his leadership.

He has also helped put HBCU football back on the map nationally thanks to his celebrity, Jackson State's success and his ability as a recruiter.

Despite being an FCS program, Jackson State secured the No. 58 recruiting class in the nation in 2021, per 247Sports.

Along with landing his son Shedeur Sanders from the 2021 class to start at quarterback, Coach Prime reeled in cornerback Travis Hunter in the 2022 class, ranked as the No. 1 overall recruit by 247Sports.

That level of recruiting excellence would be huge for an Auburn program that has not won double-digit games since 2017, finished 6-7 last season and is 3-5 this season.

If given the resources of a major college football program like Auburn, Sanders would likely have a strong chance to consistently bring in some of the top recruiting classes in the country.

A Power Five coaching job may be in his future, but his tweet Thursday suggests he is not imminently looking to jump ship from one Tigers football team to another.

Kentucky commit Robert Dillingham, one of the top players in the 2023 college basketball recruiting class, is leaving Donda Academy and signing with the Overtime Elite league.

Shams Charania of Stadium and The Athletic first reported the news and said Dillingham will maintain his college eligibility.

Donda Academy principal Jason Angell announced last week it was planning to shut down for the remainder of the 2022-23 school year following antisemitic remarks by rapper Kanye West, who founded the school earlier this year. That decision was reversed hours later.

Dillingham is a 5-star prospect and the No. 9 overall recruit in the 2023 class, according to 247Sports' composite rankings. He received interest from several high-profile college programs before he committed to UK in June.

The 6'2", 165-pound point guard is a high-volume player who's showcased a tremendous flair with the ball in his hands, and he's started to develop a reliable outside shot that solidified him as a top-tier college prospect.

His stock took off after he helped lead Team USA to a gold medal in the 2021 FIBA U-16 Americas Championship. He was named MVP of the tournament after averaging 15.7 points, 6.2 assists, 3.2 steals and 2.5 rebounds in six games.

Now he'll head to Overtime Elite, a professional league aimed at players aged 16-20 that's emerging as a collegiate alternative for prospects awaiting NBA draft eligibility.

Dillingham, 17, will keep his "priority focused" on playing for Kentucky next season despite the switch from traditional high school ball to OTE, per 247Sports' Travis Branham.

"I couldn't be more excited to join OTE," Dillingham said. "The team and resources they offer are amazing, and this is an incredible opportunity to continue to develop my game and take it to the next level, while competing against elite talent."

Tim Fuller, OTE's vice president of recruiting and player personnel, celebrated the dynamic guard's arrival.

"We are excited to recruit Rob Dillingham to our league," Fuller said. "He brings an elite knack for scoring and an infectious passion for the game. His shiftiness and incredible speed with the ball make him slithery agile with the ball in his hands."

OTE made headlines earlier this week when it announced a three-year streaming agreement with Amazon Prime Video.

That'll make it easier for Kentucky fans to keep tabs on Dillingham while awaiting his arrival on the Wildcats roster for the 2023-24 campaign.

Former Louisville head basketball coaches Rick Pitino and Chris Mack won't be disciplined by the NCAA following an investigation into allegations of violating recruiting rules and ethics standards.

Per Matt Norlander of CBS Sports, both men avoided any type of punishment and Louisville only received a $5,000 fine with two years of probation, no postseason ban and a "small" reduction in recruiting days.

The FBI announced in September 2017 the arrest of 10 people related to an investigation into bribes and corruption in college basketball. Four assistant coaches and Adidas executive James Gatto were among those arrested.

Louisville was among seven schools implicated in the first wave of the scandal, specifically its recruitment of Brian Bowen II.

Per ESPN's Mark Schlabach, an unidentified Louisville assistant coach had a phone call with three others, including then-Adidas employee Merl Code, financial advisor Munish Sood and an undercover agent for the FBI.

"The men discussed how they were going to mask an initial $25,000 payment from Adidas to the father of a high school player who had recently committed to Louisville, which has a shoe and apparel deal with Adidas," Schlabach wrote.

Schlabach noted the FBI complaint also said Gatto and Christian Dawkins, a former agent at ASM Sports, along with the other men previously "agreed to funnel $100,000" to Bowen's father in four payments.

"Dawkins told the others he was paying the player's father at the request of a Louisville coach," according to Schlabach.

Pitino was placed on unpaid administrative leave and athletic director Tom Jurich was placed on paid administrative leave by Louisville.

Jurich was originally fired for cause by the university in October 2017, but the two sides agreed to a settlement seven months later that paid him $4.5 million, his employment ended without cause since he resigned and described his settlement as a "retirement."

The University of Louisville athletics board unanimously voted to terminate Pitino's contract for cause in October 2017.

Pitino filed a $38.7 million lawsuit against the University of Louisville Athletic Association. Both parties reached a settlement in September 2019 in which Pitino received no money, but his personnel file changed his termination to a resignation.

Mack was named Louisville head coach in March 2018 after spending the previous nine years as Xavier's head coach. He was added to the NCAA investigation in October 2021 for three alleged violations that came to light following former assistant coach Dino Gaudio's dismissal earlier in the year.

Per The Athletic's Dana O'Neil, Gaudio threatened to go to the NCAA if he wasn't paid his full salary in a conversation recorded by Mack. The conversation initiated an extortion claim, leading to Gaudio pleading guilty and receiving one year of probation.

Mack was suspended for the first six games of the 2021-22 season for not following school guidelines after Gaudio's attempted extortion.

Louisville fired Mack in January after the team got off to a 6-8 start. He finished 63-36 in four seasons with the Cardinals.

Gonzaga athletic director Chris Standiford met with Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark to discuss potentially joining the conference, according to ESPN's Pete Thamel.

"Sources indicate that Gonzaga has been exploring its conference options, as it has emerged as one of the premier basketball programs in the entire country," per Thamel. "Both the Pac-12 and Big East have been engaged with Gonzaga, according to sources, but the extent of those conversations are uncertain."

Dana O'Neil of The Athletic provided additional context:

Football has been the primary driver behind realignment over the years because it's the sport with the highest revenues. Targeting Gonzaga is about landing a premier basketball school since the Bulldogs don't sponsor football.

In the case of the Big 12, getting the Bulldogs would mean becoming arguably the deepest conference in men's basketball.

This would be a symbolic victory over the Pac-12 as well, since Spokane, Washington, is firmly within the Pac-12's geographic footprint.

The Big 12 is going to lose its two biggest schools, Oklahoma and Texas, when they join the SEC by 2025 at the latest. The conference pivoted by adding BYU, Cincinnati, Houston and UCF.

Yormark hinted in July that more expansion might be on the horizon following a report of the Big 12 possibly raiding some of the Pac-12's best remaining members.

"We are exploring all options and we are open for business," he told reporters. "I think it's fair to say I've received a lot of phone calls, a lot of interest. Nothing is imminent."

While the Big 12 finalized further expansion plans, it answered another big question when it secured its media rights.

Sports Business Journal's Michael Smith and John Ourand reported Sunday the Big 12 completed deals with ESPN and Fox Sports worth $2.2 billion over six years. According to The Athletic's Max Olson and Matt Fortuna, the contracts would include a pro rata clause were the conference to grow further.

Thamel noted it's unclear how much television money Gonzaga would receive since it doesn't have a football team. The annual earnings would surely be far more than the Zags are currently getting from the West Coast Conference, though.

Julian Sayin, a 5-star quarterback in the class of 2024, has committed to play at Alabama.

"There's a lot to like about Alabama," Sayin said Wednesday, per Hank South of BamaOnLine, adding:

"I would say Bama is the standard for college football. When you go on Saturdays and turn on the TV and see that crimson, you think of Alabama. Coach Saban, being the greatest coach of all time, how could you not want to play for a guy like that? And then just the ability to produce NFL talent they have there. Their track record for quarterbacks is second to none."

Per 247Sports, Sayin received 24 offers, including ones from Georgia, LSU, Michigan, Notre Dame, Penn State and USC. He is the second overall quarterback on the 247Sports composite list and the 14th-ranked prospect overall.

The 6'1", 185-pound signal-caller out of Carlsbad (California) High School joins a Crimson Tide class of 2024 that already included a trio of 4-star prospects in cornerback Jaylen Mbakwe, athlete Martavious Collins and wide receiver Perry Thompson.

It follows a class of 2023 listed first overall in the nation thanks in part to five 5-star prospects, including safety Caleb Downs.

Sayin gives Alabama the chance to have yet another stellar signal-caller. Mac Jones led Alabama to an undefeated championship-winning season in 2020, and Bryce Young has starred for the Crimson Tide each of the past two years.

Although Young is expected to head for the NFL draft in 2023, Sayin could be the next man up when he arrives in Tuscaloosa in 2024. It's a huge win for Alabama and a tough loss for SEC rivals Georgia and LSU, who were the other two finalists for Sayin.

The future Alabama product has enjoyed a great season for the Carlsbad Lancers, who are 9-1. He's completed 131 of 192 passes for 2,032 yards with 21 touchdowns and just three interceptions.